Tracking Annette
by Point Taken
Summary: Parenting is really just a matter of tracking, of hoping your kids do not get so far ahead you can no longer see their next moves. " — Jodi Picoult
1. Chapter One

_A __new baby__ is like the beginning of all things, hope, a dream of possibilities. __~ Anonymous_

* * *

Once upon a time there was a man and a woman. They were deeply in love, but they tried to keep it a secret, because they weren't supposed to be. You see the man was a vampire and the woman was a human. They met because they were supposed to have a child together, their boss was making them. But one thing their boss didn't count on was that they would fall in love, and boy did they fall fast. Soon the woman was pregnant; the man was very wealthy so he showered her with gifts.

Something was wrong though, because the father was a vampire the pregnancy was supposed to be over in a month. It was a normal pregnancy though, their boss was really upset by this but very curious too, so he didn't dispose of the girl right away. The man told no one, but he was really happy that it was a normal pregnancy, with no excelled aging, because those pregnancies had a high mortality rate. In fact only one other person ever lived through one of those pregnancies, but that Lady isn't so important in this story. So the woman gave birth to a little girl. They named her Annette Marie; they didn't bother with a last name because those weren't that important.

Two months went by, the little family was happy, but something was bothering the mother. She was very paranoid about her baby, saying that their boss wanted it dead because it wasn't like what the other half-human half- vampires were like. The Father tried to soothe her; he didn't want to think anything bad about his boss. The Mother wouldn't listen though and insisted that they move away. At first the father was torn. His boss had been really good to him in the past, but he wanted to please his lover and their daughter. He reasoned that they just needed a little time away from the castle. Did I mention they lived in a castle? Well they did, in fact their boss lived there too, as did the rest of the father's coworkers. But I'm getting off track. So the father went to tell his boss that he was leaving for a little bit. His boss was understanding and gave them his blessing. A week before the little family was suppose to leave the mom said she was going to go out for a while with their daughter, who was now six months old. The Father kissed them both good bye and continued to pack up their things. But like every other Fairytale there needs to be a tragedy in it to make that Happily Ever After seem so much sweeter.

* * *

"Demetri," Felix said as he clapped his hand on his companion's shoulder. Rain fell from the sky and Demetri wondered if the angels were mourning with him. He had a hard time believing it, after all what business do Angels have in mourning a demon's love? Demetri was aware that Felix was trying to convey his deepest sympathies, but his ears had gone deaf in the roar of the wind. Demetri was conscious of everything that was going on around him, though he tried his best to tune it all out. He knew that his daughter was screaming at him to pick her up, but he couldn't bear to touch her. This was all so wrong! Kareena should be here, with him. He shouldn't be staring into the ocean that roared and devoured his love's ashes as soon as they were thrown. His daughter shouldn't be wearing black and sitting in Chelsea's hands as he tried to rein in his grief. Damnit, this shouldn't be happening! The injustice of it all was unbearable. In the background his daughter continued to scream.

Demetri glared down at the ocean, he could sense everyone moving away. Chelsea was still there though, holding onto his daughter. Felix had melted into the forest and was already on his way back to the castle. Everyone was leaving him to have some semblance of privacy. Chelsea shifted Annette in her arms, unsure of what to do with the screaming infant. Demetri fell to his knees; his pale hands shot out and grabbed the ground around him. An inhuman howl rose from his chest, his grief mixing with his daughter's, the rain making a substitute for tears he could not shed as he raised his head to the sky. Vainly he looked for Kareena's tenor, trying to find out this was all some horrible mistake. She wasn't in that fire; she wasn't killed along with fifteen others. But she was killed; she couldn't escape that fire, maybe if he changed her… Why didn't Annette shut up? Her cries were echoing in his head. She needs to be quiet; he can't deal with her right now. She was always crying, couldn't she see that her father needed her to be quiet? Why the fuck won't she shut up! Demetri was filled with anger as he forcefully stood up and rushed at Annette, still in Chelsea's hands.

"Shut up, Shut up. SHUT UP!" he roared at her, "Why can't you shut up? What the FUCK is wrong with you?" Annette cried even harder, her nose dribbling. Chelsea held her closer to her chest. Annette grabbed onto her black shirt, trying to hide herself from Demetri.

"Demetri," Chelsea said quietly, laying a hand on his arm. He shrugged her off.

"You're always crying. You just can't be quiet. I swear to God Annette if you don't shut up soon I'll rip your throat out. I swear to God I will," He growled into her face. Annette couldn't be silenced though, wailing even louder, pounding on his sensitive ear drums. Demetri was seeing red, the day was wearing on him, and his daughter just wouldn't be quiet.

"Why?" he whispered, "Why can't you just do this one thing for me. Please honey, please, do this for Daddy. Please." He held out his hands, wanting to take his daughter into them. Chelsea was reluctant but looking at Demetri's desperate expression she caved and handed him his daughter.

"Please honey, Please, please, please, please," He begged her as he buried his face into her short wet brown hair.

"Daddy, Momma?" Annette asked him as she pulled on his dark hair.

Demetri's entire body froze up; Chelsea also tensed, anticipating something horrible. Demetri's hands started to shake as he fought off the urge to crush his daughter to dust.

"Momma?"Annette asked again, her face started to twist. She was working herself into a tantrum. Demetri recognized the symptoms. The child started to scream as Demetri's hand closed in around her delicate neck.

"For the last time Annette, be quiet," he growled softly as his hand started to close around her windpipe. Annette choked and gurgled, but fell silent, looking up at her Father searching for the man who read her bedtime stories and would laugh when she fell and pick her up and kiss her bruises. But no, right now her Father was Demetri the vampire. A cold, grief stricken inhuman monster.

"Demetri," Chelsea aid softly as she gently tugged Annette out of his hands before he did something he would regret later, "I'm going to take her back to the castle before she catches a cold." Demetri looked at his hands, shame burning through him. He felt oddly empty without his daughters warmth near him, still he allowed Chelsea to slip away taking his child with her.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, and in all honestly he didn't know if he was talking to himself, to Annette or to Kareena.

* * *

"Demetri," Aro called to his best tracker. Demetri sat in his office, watching his daughter play with her toys and clay. Annette looked up at Aro as he entered the well lit room, the light from the fire reflected off of Aro's black hair; she wrinkled her nose and smashed the green play dough to the hardwood floor.

"Master," Demetri stood up and bowed to Aro. He threw a look at Annette that meant that she was to behave herself. Annette made a face at him, not comprehending what her father was trying to convey to her, thinking he was just playing a game like they use to do.

"Hello Annette," Aro greeted her as he swept towards her, Annette ignored him and continued her play. Aro picked her up fluidly; she cried out at the contact with his cold skin and started to squirm in his arms.

"Daddy," she wailed as she held out her arms for him to receive her. Demetri sighed and took her into his arms, she nestled herself against the fabric of his shirt, pulling at his collar every now and then.

"How old is she now?" Aro inquired politely, they both knew that he knows her exact age.

"Ten Months," Demetri pulled his Volturi crest out of Annette's hands which were suspiciously getting closer to her mouth. Aro watched Annette with a sad little smile on his face.

"Demetri, this can't work out," Aro said slowly. Demetri's head shot up staring at his master with a mixture of confusion and shock.

"What cannot work Master?"

"Demetri, my son," Aro sighed, "You are too distract by your daughter. I've notice that you hardly go on missions anymore and when you do-."

"Master if this is about the Bosnian Coven I can assure you a mistake like that won't happen again," Demetri pleaded.

"Yes I agree," Aro stared hard at Annette; she glared back at him and pulled on her father's hair, "I think it will be in everyone's best interest if you gave her up."

Demetri froze, his hands which were about to detangle his hair from his daughters fingers froze midair. Annette, not sensing the change in the room continued to pull happily.

"Master, please," he begged, "I'll hire someone to look after her, she won't hinder my performance anymore."

Aro gazed sadly down at him, "Demetri, I know that you are still hurting from Kareena's death," Demetri flinched when he said her name, "but this is no way for a child to live. Shut up in a castle all day, she needs to interact with her peers. She's human enough that she will blend in. I have found a wonderful family that is very willing to take her under their wing, they've been trying for a little girl for a very long time and I think it would be best if she went with them."

Demetri looked down at his daughter, who was vainly trying to tear the Volturi crest off of his neck.

"Master, I can't," his voice cracked, "I can't lose her too."

"Demetri," Aro clapped his hand on his shoulder, "it's for the best. She deserves to have a normal life, and you can't keep on living like this!" Demetri hung his head in defeat, his eyes stung from unshed tears. Annette placed her tiny pale hand against his cheek, her little fingernails scratching against his granite hard skin.

"I'll think about it Master," Aro nodded his head and left. They both knew that he was going to go through with it. He closed the door softly behind him and left Demetri with his thoughts.

* * *

Demetri hugged his daughter to his chest for one last time, savoring her sweet smell and committing to memory her soft skin and the feel of her fine hair.

"Daddy?" Annette asked as he let go of her and handed her off to Felix. It was decided that Demetri should not go along to drop Annette of with her new family. Aro thought it would be best if he had a clean break.

"Daddy?" Annette fidgeted in Felix's arms as he started to walk away from Demetri. She attempted to climb over his shoulder to get back to her father, but he yanked her back down.

"Daddy?" she screamed, tears welling into her eyes as Felix handed her to Heidi and closed the car door. Annette twisted and turned her body, pounding on the window calling out for her Father come to her.

"Daddy!" she whimpered as Heidi pulled her away from the tinted window and tucked her into her arm. The leather creaked underneath her as she adjusted herself.

"It's okay Annette," Felix soothed her; "We're going on a road trip. Then we'll be on a plane! You like planes right?"

Annette just stared at him, tears racing down her face.

"Daddy," she whispered defiantly as she tunneled herself into Heidi's pink silk shirt. The car pulled out of their garage and started to head north; towards the airport.

"I'm sorry," Demetri whispered to the retreating black car as it weaved through the buildings and out of his sight.

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_Review?_


	2. Chapter Two

_" I blinked and missed her growing up"_

* * *

So many years passed. Fourteen years and three months to be exact. Annette had turned fifteen. The Volturi had grown in numbers and Demetri still mourned his dead love. But The Volturi does not allow wallowing for too long; soon Demetri was back to the hybrid experiments. But a curious thing happened all of his children were normal. They had no vampire qualities to them what so ever. After twelve tries Aro finally gave the say so that Demetri could stop. All of the girls were sent off to adoptive homes and all of them had no idea that they were related or that their father was a vampire. They had contact with each other. Like Annette and Erika, who was two years younger than her, they went to the same summer camp for two years. They were in two different age groups though and had no contact, only caught glimpse of each other in the hallway. And Maria, seven, and Jayda, eight, they once attended the same baseball game and sat only three seats away. In fact Maria saw Jayda get cotton candy then begged her mother to buy her some. Jayda gave her a piece of hers when Maria's mother refused. All of the girls were apart yet strangely attached. Barely any of them looked alike, and they had only fleeting encounters with each other, nothing that they would remember later on in life. On whole they were happy with life, except for the occasional temper tantrum. Everything would have been great, had Aro not called for a meeting one day.

In this meeting it was decided that all of the children of Demetri had to come back to Volterra. Reasons were not given, and questions were not asked. A wing was furnished to suit their needs, including a kitchen/living room and a school room. Each girl had her own room and the youngest; just five months had her nursery. Aro attained all of their current addresses and guards were dispatched to retrieve them.

Corin had Annette and Camilla.

* * *

The first thing that you had to understand about Annette was that she hated being told what to do. I could tell that about her as soon as she walked into the throne room. With that damn cocky smirk on her face, strutting in with her chin held high, with Camilla shuffling after her. Camilla held onto her coat for dear life as she stared up at my Masters. Fear was etched all over her face, not Annette though, no never Annette. Who I've only seen lose that confident bounce in her step three times in the time that I have known her. She met each of the ancients gaze with her own glare, which Caius gladly returned.

"Welcome, welcome my dears!" Aro clapped as he stood up from his throne and glided towards them.

"Hello," Camilla mumbled into Annette's jeans, sneaking a peek at Aro every now and then. Aro laughed and smiled kindly down at the girl. If it was even physically possible Annette's eyes narrowed even more. She did not greet Aro and if Aro thought her lack of greeting was offensive, he did not show it. I shifted to my side, bored with this exchange. I had seen it done with her other sisters; mostly the girls just cry and run off to pout in their new room. I wasn't the only other one bored with it; I could feel Jane losing what little interest she had across the room.

"Hello Camilla," Aro said as he stared down at her. Camilla was now molding herself so closely to Annette's leg that only half of her eye was showing. Aro held out her hand to her, a simple handshake to the child; a chance to get inside of her head and see her worth for Aro. Camilla looks up at Annette, as if searching to permission that she could touch him. Annette looked Aro up and down and discreetly shook her head. Camilla in turn refused Aro's invitation, gripping Annette's leg even tighter. Aro's hand fell and a frown graced his face, but disappeared a moment later, too fast for the girls to notice. I could see Annette's hands form fist inside her jacket sleeve. We all expected Annette to be the most difficult; after all she was the oldest at fifteen. A horrible year to confine a teenager to a castle, right when they're at the peak of the rebellion stage.

"Camilla," Aro chided softly, "It's rude to refuse a friendly gesture."

"It's also rude to steal kids, didn't seem to bother you," Annette drawled as she reached down to pat Camilla's hair and draw her closer.

"I'm sorry you see it that way," Aro bowed his head in remorse, "Can you not try to think of it as being reunited with your father?"

"A father that gave us up," Annette mumbled ash she crossed her arms and glared.

My master was the perfect picture of disappointment. I could see Demetri shuffling out of the corner of my eye, ashamed by either his daughter's display of defiance or her harsh words. I did not know which one. Aro gave them the same speech as he did the other girls. Camilla's eyes closed halfway through as she dug deeper and deeper into Annette's leg. How Annette managed to stay up right I would never know.

"Corin, why don't you take Camilla to her room. I would like to speak with Annette," Aro clapped his hands and Corin appeared, grim as ever to cart Camilla off. She woke with vengeance.

"Nonononononono," she wailed, "Annette don't let them hurt me." Tears started streaming down her face. Annette threw an irritated glance at Aro, as if it was his fault the child was temperamental.

"Sh, Camilla, I'm right here. You're just going to your room. I'll be right behind you I just have to talk to Him first," she said him as if it was a particularly nasty taste in her mouth. A red haze poked at the edges of my eyes. How dare she be disrespectful of my Master? He is a kind man, offering them eternal life to serve in the Volturi guard. She is an ignorant child; I had to remind myself before I did something that I would regret. A swish of a cloak and a muffled cry later, Camilla was removed from the room. Annette stood there proudly, her hands tucked into her pockets of her black jacket. Her brown hair created a see through net to reveal a black iris that stared deep into Master Aro's crimson ones.

"Annette," he chided softly, "I remember when you were so small I could cradle you easily in the palm of my two hands" he sighed softly now, "Now look at you. All grown up and in need of no one." He cocked his head to the side one finger placed on his check. "But there is a way you can help me."

"I'm not going to abuse their trust like that Aro. You see some of us in this room have morals," she snapped, before Aro could ever get to his proposal.

"You were always good at guessing what came next, Annette," he purred, "I'm sorry you will not accept the offer, before you even considered it." He sighed and closed his eyes.

"Sorry to disappoint," she sneered as switched her weight to her other leg. I could see Master Caius's hand twitching, as if he wanted to smack the child across her face. We waited in silence for a few moments, as Master Aro weighed his options.

"Very well," his voice warm, "I can respect your wishes, Alec my dear. Please show Annette to her room."

"Yes, Master," I bowed and appeared at her side in an instance, my face expressionless.

"Goodnight Annette," My Master said genially as he raised his hand to ruffle her hair. She flinched out of his way and accidently bumped into my arm. My hand reached out to steady her before she fell flat on her face, even though the idea sounded appealing to me.

"Thank you," She said to me as she looked up. Her eyes were a green mixture with flecks and swirls of brown in them. Absolutely breath-taking. Then again she was half vampire. She wasn't exactly a beauty in a classical sense that was but she was pretty none the less. Maybe not extraordinarily pretty, but an average one. She smiled a slow smile; that showed white teeth with a small gap between her two front teeth. I took all this in a fraction of a second after she said thank you. I gave a stiff nod and started off towards her room. I could feel her heat behind me and hear the light pitter patter of her feet hitting the ground, strange though that I had to strain to hear her moving. She moved almost like a wraith behind me. I knew we were closing in on her room when I could hear the snuffling and wailing of her younger counter part. Such pitiful a thing. I scowled on the inside, angry that these worthless things were living under the same roof as I. Master Aro rebuffed any suggestion that they live in any of the many other houses the Volturi owned. His logic was unfathomable to all including the other Masters. I held open the solid dark oak door for Annette that would lead to her new World. It was a long corridor, a single dark red oriental rug running down the length of it. Pictures lined the dark beige walls, mostly of them with my Masters in them, all incased in a large gold frame with a thin piece of glass covering the actual portrait because the Volturi had no fantasies that these pictures would remain unharmed with small children running about, all of which had a reason (in their mind at least) to hate them. I glanced back to make sure Annette was still following me, surprised by her lack of speaking as I walked her to her room. Her face was filled with angry as she looked at the pictures. Disgust twisted her features to the point where you could not even call her pretty anymore.

"Is there a problem, Annette?" my voice was one of an old friend, as if I actually cared what happened to her.

"These pictures aren't staying here," she said simply as she continued walking this time beside me.

"Why is that? I think they are lovely pictures. They were made right here in the seventeenth century as a gift for our Masters," my pale hand gestured to one of Caius and Marcus pictured rightfully of gods accepting an offering from a mortal man near a forest. Trees twisted themselves to make thrones for my Masters as an ethereal glow surrounded their robes that were the deepest blacks. A man lay at their feet, a bite mark on one of his wrists, another on his neck as his hand offered jewels to my Lords.

"It's macabre and egoistic," she snapped, "They are not staying anywhere near impressionable children."

I simply raised an eyebrow at her and continued walking down the hallway. In truth I was angry that she had the gull to assume she would have any say in what happened around here. Each door we passed had a golden plaque on it, and in fairytale script each of the girls names were engraved in it. Annette paused at Camilla's room, but soon followed me with an impatient tap of the foot. Her room was at the end of the hallway, I paused outside of it, unwilling to go farther.

"Thank you for showing me the way," She nodded her head towards me in gratitude, "I still hate you though." She added as an afterthought as she opened her door and stepped inside, not waiting to see my response. But I did hear her laugh softy as she closed the door and a hiss escaped my mouth.

* * *

_A/N… It's only been five months or so... sorry guys. Please tell me how you feel about this story in a review. I promise I will try very hard to update more often if I knew more people read…._


	3. Chapter Three

_The best way to keep children at home is to make the home atmosphere pleasant, and let the air out of the tires. ~Dorothy Parker_

It was one week in that Annette made her first escape. No one noticed until the girls were all assembled to go to their school room. The set up was of a one room school house with desks for each of the girls and two teachers to split the children among them. The teachers of course did not notice Annette was missing for a while; the girls were still adjusting to their new life and were a tad bit rowdy at times. I had taken another lower guards place in watching over the girls that day. I was extremely bored and the little girls were very entertaining at times. Idly I played with a pencil, twirling it in my hand and making it tumble from knuckle to knuckle. I focused on the sound of tiny hands pulling out papers and chairs screeching against the floor as the girls pulled them out, instead of the pounding of their hearts or the heat coming off their delicate flesh.

Master Aro had decided that it would be good for the guards to be in every room in their suite except for their bedrooms as a reminded that the Volturi is watching over them. The teachers had started to assign each girl their class work, both of their high heels clicking in unison as they passed out worksheets and books. The teachers themselves were haggard looking women, their hair up in tight buns, which bobbed up and down as they look over the young girls sitting in their desks. Miss Randomar was a spinster with graying blonde hair and dull blue eyes; she took care of the younger half of children. Miss Wood had red hair that was as vibrant now as it was in her youth and sharp brown eyes with pencil thin eyebrows that always seemed too high up. She looked like she was always surprised by what she saw.

"Camilla," Miss Wood drawled, "Where is Annette?"

"I dunno," Camilla hardly glanced up from her work, but I could see that she was trying to repress a smile. Miss Wood's lips puckered and her eye brows drew together.

"Well was she at breakfast?"

"I dunno."

"Is she still in her room?"

"I dunno." Camilla's smile was becoming more pronounce now as she had lifted her face up to beam at the woman towering above her. I removed myself from the leaning position I was in and frowned. If Annette was missing and no one had noticed until ten o'clock in the morning Master Aro will be extremely displeased. My almost black cape swirled around me as I flashed by Miss Wood's side. I could hear both of the humans' heart jumped as I suddenly appeared. Camilla's smile faltered on her pale face.

"Camilla," I was calm as I said this but she still flinched back as if I whipped her, "Where is Annette?" By this time the other girls had stopped what they were doing as they watched the scene unfolding before them.

"I-I d-don't-t know," she stammered as she started the twist her grey skirt in her hands.

"Camilla" I leaned forward and tilted her small chin up with one pale finger. Her brown eyes widened with fear, I knew she could see my red eyes darken.

"She t-told me not t-to tell," She wailed, "I know she went out b-but s-she d-d-didn't tell m-me w-where." She squinted her eyes shut as tear slipped out of them. I let go of her chin; Annette was missing. She had "gone out" somewhere and could be roaming the city attempting to escape to get back to her old life. I silently cursed as I stood straight up. I would have to alert Demetri so he can begin the manhunt for his eldest spawn. It was going to be a long morning, I thought as I raced out of the girl's quarters.

* * *

Annette decided she rather liked Italy. Nothing seemed to be new or shiny except for the cars of course. Everything had a history here, they had a story. They knew where they came from, they knew the past behind every nook and cranny of the place. Annette was tired of the castle; everything seemed to be familiar to her, but not really. She certainly didn't want it to be familiar, because then she would have to accept that Demetri was in fact her biological father and this whole twisted tale was true.

It was nice to just sit out in the town square, right outside the clock tower and just look around, she could sit there and just think then. Behind her the water fountain gushed out gallons of water from the statues mouth and the sound added to the melody of the place. She sighed as a cloud moved in front of the sun. She didn't quite know how vampires worked, she had no clue if they could stand in direct sunlight or not. So every time a cloud passed in front of the sun, even for a short while she panicked. It's not like she was _that_ far away from the castle, just outside of it in fact. She looked up at one of the turrets peeking out from behind a building. She bet Aro could probably see her is he looked out of one of those long thin windows.

Her pale hand skimmed the water of the fountain idly, wondering vaguely what would happen when she returned to the castle. They might kill her, she thought, but that seemed a little extreme. Maybe a little warning, a slap on the wrist and then she would be sent back to her studies. She didn't really know why she left and she felt guilty for leaving Camilla behind, but she just needed a break. She had been there a week an already she was getting cabin fever. The cloud wandered away from the sun and Annette enjoyed the feeling of its warm rays hitting her skin. She leaned her head back so she could soak up as much Vitamin D that she could, for when she returned she was surely going to be in deep shit.

She wasn't to concern however, because right now she felt the sun caressing her with welcomed heat. She opened her eyes to see when the next cloud would be coming in and moaned at what she saw; a giant storm cloud. It wasn't quite over the city yet however she knew that the wind would blow it over in just a few seconds. She sighed as she looked around her, she wanted to stay so dearly and push off that afternoon when she came back to the Volturi. She closed her eyes again, shoving the thought of them from her mind. As the wind picked up around her bringing the storm in, she desperately tried the keep the memory of the sun in her mind, hopefully then she could keep she sanity for a little while longer.

* * *

I was racing along the many hallways in the castle when I caught a glimpse of her. It was just an accident really; I was rounding one of the corners so my head was at an angle and so happened to look out of the window. I stopped so hard that I skidded; the green rug actually tore under my expensive shoes. She was _outside? _How could she have possible gotten outside? We had guards at every entrance and exit of the castle, someone had to have let her slip by or they weren't at their station. This girl was making an embarrassment out of the Volturi's effectiveness.

I glared at her through the window; she was just sitting by the town's fountain languidly skimming her hand over the surface of the water. She glanced up at the sky as a cloud covered the sun, than looked nervously around her. I chuckled darkly to myself, I knew she was worried about the guard coming and dragging her away. And I was about to make her fear come true, I thought as I grinned a slow smile, storm clouds were blowing in.

She couldn't hide forever.

* * *

_A/N: I am so very sorry for the wait. My laptop is just now working and I had a bit of writer's block. However you have a chapter now, which should hold you over for a little bit. I'm already planning on writing the next one as soon as I upload this so it should be out in a week or two hopefully. _

_So you guys are starting to see the reason for the title of this story in this chapter, more on that in later chapters. _

_Review?_


	4. Chapter Four

_If I had my child to raise all over again,  
I'd build self-esteem first, and the house later.  
I'd finger-paint more, and point the finger less.  
I would do less correcting and more connecting.  
I'd take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes.  
I'd take more hikes and fly more kites.  
I'd stop playing serious, and seriously play.  
I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars.  
I'd do more hugging and less tugging.  
- Diane Loomans, from "If I Had My Child to Raise Over Again"_

* * *

Demetri stared at his daughter. She had been yanked into his office by a very pissed off Alec. Demetri was surprised because of this because of two reasons. One it took a lot to lose Alec's composer like he so obviously has and second Annette was suppose to be in school and couldn't have possible gotten into so much trouble that she had to report to Demetri for disciplinary action. He stood up from behind his desk to greet them.

"Alec," he nodded in his direction, "Is something wrong?" his red eyes roamed over Annette body, searching for any injuries. The only thing he could find was Alec's hand digging into her skin so hard that it would surely bruise. He winced a little at that.

"Yes," Alec hissed as he directed Annette to sit down in one of the green arm chairs near his desk, "Annette why don't you tell your _father," _he emphasized the word to give it a secret meaning that Demetri wasn't aware of, "what you were doing outside today?"

Demetri froze at the word "outside". Did Alec mean outside in the gardens or outside as in the city. He prayed it wasn't the latter.

Annette looked very nonchalantly up at Demetri, "I went outside to explore the city, _father_," she added snidely with a glare in Alec's direction. Demetri shut his eyes and groaned internally. The Masters would hear about this and be furious. Annette didn't realize how much trouble she had caused.

"And how Annette," Demetri sighed, "Did you manage to get outside?"

Annette gave him a confused look, "I walked out the door. How do _you_ get outside?" she added as if wondering how she could have been related to someone so obviously dim witted. Demetri blinked, he knew Annette was lying because none of the Volturi guards would ever allow humans to come and go as they pleased unless they had been informed a head of time that that human had clearance to leave the castle. Not even the Vampires themselves could just take a stroll whenever.

Alec seemed to be thinking the same thing, "Do not lie to us Annette, you can't just walk out of the Volturi castle without someone noticing." When Alec said the word "lie" Annette's face darkened. Demetri clearly remembered her face looking like that right before she was about to throw a God Almighty tantrum.

"I'm not a liar," she grounded out through clenched teeth her hands balling into fists on her lap. Her lips even pouted the same way.

"_Daddy! Doggy, I want."_

"_No, Annette, Master Caius does not like dogs."_

"_I. WANT!" The toddler stamped her small feet, her shoes lighting up as they hit the hard floor. _

"Then _how _did you mange to walk out the door Annette?" Alec almost screamed at her. Demetri blinked and came back to the present. Annette's face was now red and at some point she had jumped to her feet.

"I _walked _out thedoor, why is that so difficult for you to understand? I placed one foot in front of the other and walked outside. It's not my damn fault you have a shitty security system," she bawled at Alec.

"Annette, watch your langue," Demetri scolded, "Now was anyone at the door when you decided to explore the city?"

Annette let out a big puff of air, blowing a strand of her brown hair out of her face, "Yes, A vampire and a human were there. They didn't say anything when I walked out so I assumed it was okay. What's the big deal anyway? I just walked outside. Didn't Aro say that this was to be our new home," she looked sick at having to say those words, "Shouldn't I be allowed outside? I was just in the town square, it's not like you guys couldn't keep an eye on me if you wished."

Demetri sighed, "Yes, this is your new home however you cannot leave whenever you wish. You have to tell someone. Wasn't that one of your rules at your old home? You're mother had to know where you are?"

"Not one that she enforced a lot," she mumbled back, "Besides I told Camilla where I was going in case you needed to find me.

"Yes, because a five year old is the first one we would go to if you went missing," Alec's eyes had now turn a deep black, though they had feed yesterday. Demetri tensed instinctively, he could feel the danger in the room as Alec slipped into a crouch. Annette looked at him strangely.

"Are you practicing your role for _Cats_ or something Alec?" Amusement colored her tone. She was actually _teasing _him. Demetri could not believe that his daughter could be so reckless. Alec gave a low growl in response to her statement and pounced forward. Demetri quickly reacted and caught Alec midair, slamming him into the wall. A large dent appeared as their marble skin made contact with the stone. Annette gave a startled cry and back away from the wrestling vampires. She still had an amused glint in her eye however. Alec growled at Demetri and looked as if he was about to bite him but stopped himself. Demetri stared hard at Alec, black irises meeting a matching set. Within a tenth of a second Alec was out of the room, running to his room to cool off and probably smash some furniture.

Demetri removed himself from his defensive position and stood. He looked at the dent in his office with annoyance. He hated when his things were damaged. He then turned to his daughter, his annoyance turning to fury when he say that she was holding back laughter, by biting on her knuckles.

"And what Annette," he grounded out, "Do you find so entertaining about this?"

"Oh Daddy," she said it cruelly, aiming to hurt and she did, "I just love pissing people off."

* * *

_A/N: Wow, Annette's acting like a brat isn't she? Then again her whole life has been ripped away from her. It's expected that she would feel a little vengeful. Again, I'm terribly sorry for the delay. I just find it very hard to write sometimes. It is a short chapter but, it does give us a little insight into Annette. And a chapter is better than no chapter. _


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